


Keeper of Thine Heart

by homosuck



Category: Homestuck, MS Paint Adventures
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, M/M, Slurs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-01
Updated: 2016-06-15
Packaged: 2018-07-11 13:28:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7053592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/homosuck/pseuds/homosuck
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dave Strider is your everyday teachers pet, and is head over heels with his childhood crush, John. But John also happens to be Mr. Cool Kid extraordinaire, and also Dave's #1 bully. When their English teacher insists that Dave save John's grade by tutoring him, Dave's worst (or best?) dreams are bound to come true.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Prince of the Sky is Failing English

**Author's Note:**

> I havent written in a while so this may be slow going, but I have the whole thing planned and ready to be created so buckle up kiddies. We're goin on an angsty ride. (also John does use some homophobic slurs against Dave when hes with his group of hooligans, so heres a warning)

Soft black hair that rivaled the mightiest raven paired against eyes as blue as the deepest of oceans. Son to both the sea and the sky, he flowed so beautifully towards the blonde boy that one may assume he was simply an illusion of grace. His smile reminded angels why they sang and bells why they sounded. His complexion was smooth as a river stone and flavored like honey, left unmarked by any sin of lust. He drew closer, placing a gentle hand against the side of the boys face. He bent forward and his lips drew close to the boy’s ear so that he may hear the whisper of his holy presence. A warm breath danced around in the air as he inhaled, and with one breath outward, he said onto him thus,

“The fuck you looking at geek? Fuck off.”

Dave Strider shook to attention in the middle of class, snapping back to reality from his vivid daydreaming. The subject of such dreams was to the right and diagonal from him, sitting backwards and straddling the chair. John Egbert raised an eyebrow at Dave and decided to elaborate.

“Are you deaf Strider? Might as well snap a pic to fap to while you’re at it, fuckin’ homo.” John’s gremlins guffawed and hollered other insults, but John simply maintained eye contact with Dave, smirking that perfect smile and leaving him singed with hatred. A devil in an angel’s guise.

Dave broke the fiery line of vision and stared at the books on his desk. Stupid of him to even imagine John in any situation other than making him hate himself. In his creative mind, John was the prince of the skies that carried him off to safer places, but here, where life pulled him along by the shirt collar, John’s was the hand that held the fabric. The end of class rang in like a sigh of mercy, and Dave dashed for the exit faster than John could shout an insult. He hoped to dash into the hall before the onslaught of students came rushing in from other rooms, but before he could clear the threshold, his last name was called. Distinguishing that the voice was not John’s and belonged to someone older, he sighed and pulled a quick 180 to go back into the hell that was his English class.

English was not hell because of the subject, but simply because of the tightrope he walked with John. At the same exact time that he was ecstatic about having a class with the drop dead gorgeous boy, he would rather drop dead himself than to hear whatever John had to say to him on any given day. Dave actually very much liked literature; he was very gifted with his words and crafted the most poetic of stories and tall tales. He was somewhat of a teacher’s pet, and perhaps this is why he was called back to class on that day.

Mr. English was about at oblivious as anyone could be, down to the point that Dave sometimes wondered if he only picked the job because his last name matched the subject. He was always rambling on and using words that Dave was almost certain didn’t and shouldn’t ever exist, and most of the time he had to ask the class what they had been doing the past week so he could continue to teach them. He was a younger teacher, fresh out of college at the age of 25, although most times he was hardly distinguishable from the students that attended his classes. It was Mr. English who had called him back into the class as everybody else left, and Dave tensed for John to come out and plow him over. He could perfectly imagine some comments coming from him and his group that would paint a new definition of “teachers pet” and maybe try to explain why Dave had straight A’s with a few X-rated theories. But there was no sight of the boy and his brigade, thank god. Dave stepped back inside and made his way to Mr. English’s desk.

“Yes sir?” he asked, standing awkwardly with his hands in his jean pockets by the teacher’s desk. Some students were still packing up their bags, but Dave paid no attention to them, instead wanting to get whatever he needed from the professor as quickly as he could so he could run home as fast as humanly possible. Mr. English was rummaging through papers that looked like past tests and quizzes. Dave peered over and was almost knocked unconscious by Mr. English suddenly popping his head upward with the discovery of the papers he’d been looking for.

“Aha! Here they are. Now, Dave, if you would,” he said, adjusting his glasses over inquiring green eyes. “Can you look through a few of these answers for me?”

Dave looked at Mr. English dubiously but nonetheless complied, taking the papers from his hands. They were indeed the tests they had been assigned and paired with readings and novels throughout the semester. Dave skimmed the sheet and couldn’t help but let a snort escape from him before quickly regaining composure, just in case Mr. English was trying to be serious. Although that seemed hard to do with what he had been asked to read. The answers were simply ridiculous.

“1. How did the symbol of the four leaf clover accentuate the death of Maywater Lin?

That shes a virgin whos never had this dick

  1. How does the character of Christopher change in the last chapter?



He is revealed to be a gigantic ballsack and rampages the city, killing thousands

  1. What is the importance of the Wayside waterfall?



All of the Above.”

The rest of the test was just a swarm of crudely drawn genitalia. Dave sifted through the other papers and found more of the same content, every one completely covered in childish doodles and wrong answers. Mr. English had folded back the name part of the papers, and Dave glanced at him as he touched the crease. Mr. English nodded and Dave unfolded the top. ‘John E’ was scrawled across every page, barely legible at all, but recognizable enough to Dave. Even though he hadn’t thought about it much, it wasn’t surprising. John never did any work in class, and instead spent most of his time wasting it.

“Perhaps you know what I’ll be asking of you Dave?” Mr. English asked, folding his hands together on top of the desk. Dave’s blood pressure rose. No, he couldn’t be asking him to do this. Dave made a silent prayer to every godly being in the universe that his assumption wasn’t true.

“Uh, n-no sir, I don’t think I completely understand,” he said, trying to play off his nervousness with laughter. This just made him sound even more anxious, but Mr. English didn’t seem to notice. Instead he looked up and over Dave’s shoulder. He smiled to something behind him, and his fears were confirmed in one sentence.

“Mr. Egbert here is certainly in need of a tutor for this subject, as you can see, Mr. Strider. I assume you’ll be willing to share your expertise with a fellow struggling peer?” Dave’s hearing went fuzzy near the end of the string of words, and he turned to see the boy in question slouched against the opposite wall. His slim arms were crossed over his lean body and his eyes pierced like ice from under a wisp of black bangs.

John rolled up from the wall and sauntered over. Confidence gave John a little less than an inch of height more than Dave, but they were still very similar in height. Similar enough for John’s smile to be level with Dave’s clenched jaw.

“Looks like we’ll be spending some time together,” John said evenly, pleasing Mr. English and prompting him to start babbling on about how and when the two should plan to meet for study sessions together. But Dave was only focused on John. And John had not paused to pay attention to Mr. English either. Instead, he made it look like he was fixing his jacket, but instead he punched Dave’s shoulder, hard. He then continued to lean down the tiniest bit and whisper into his ear. But this was not a daydream.

“Don’t worry, it’ll be fun.” John cracked his knuckles, “For me.”


	2. Hands Not Taken, Minds Mistaken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Studying plans are made and suspicions risen.

Hell had frozen over and Satan himself had taken over the persona of Jolly Ol’ Saint Nick. This was unbelievable. The most absolute worse situation Dave could’ve gotten himself into was swallowing him deeper with every second. He was going to die because of this. Well maybe not really, but it was in close ranks with death in his mind.

As Mr. English continued on to pull out weekly schedules for private tutoring sessions to be planned at one of their homes, Dave’s blood stopped flowing. His heart knocked against his minds door with earnest, trying its best to get his attention back to breathing.

John continued to smirk and paid no attention to Dave’s soul transcending through the ceiling and into the heavens. Instead he watched the teacher and answered the questions of location and best times. Why was John acting so cool about all of this? Was he actually willing to be tutored, or was he simply waiting to have the perfect excuse to beat Dave to a pulp every Monday after school? Dave was pulled from his thoughts as Mr. English questioned him directly.

“Mr. Strider? Ah yes, back to Earth it seems. So Dave, Mr. Egbert here has agreed to the arrangements, how do they look to you?” He handed him the sheet of paper he had been scribbling on. It was a whole months plan, and it looked as though the sessions were slotted for only a few hours every Monday. Under each new week, Mr. English had written ‘D.S.’ and ‘J.E.’ to show the change of households that the studying would be taken place at. It was only 5 Monday’s, and only a few hours each time. It actually wasn’t that bad of a deal. But then the reality of actually seeing John’s home hit him, and the impossibility of it all hit him even harder. Not only would he have to be presentable enough to go to John’s house, Dave’s home would also be visited. Dave visibly paled. His brothers would undeniably have to be introduced to his biggest crush and most persistent bully at the same time. There was no way he could possibly avoid that. Dave decided then and there that this was worse than any kind of purgatory imaginable.

“M-Mr. English I don’t thi-“ he stammered, before being outright interrupted.

“Now Mr. Strider I will expect only the best from you on this assignment, and yes, you will be graded on this. I’ve seen the scholarships you’ve been working towards and many of them require tutoring hours do they not? This is a perfect opportunity,” English said, rambling on about the endless fruits this would bear. Damn him, using Dave’s own ‘be above and beyond’ mindset to lasso him into the arena. An arena carrying the most destructive and beautiful bull he had ever seen. John side eyed Dave and smirked wider. He knew Dave couldn’t get out of this.

“A few extra credit points won’t hurt you, and John here needs all the points he can get to be able to graduate this year. Your success and in correlation, John’s success, will lead you to do great things Dave, I can feel it in my bones.” Mr. English leaned back in his rolling chair and almost tipped it over, in a scramble to be set upright he knocked over several items from the desk, making an even bigger mess of the papers already strewn there. He adjusted himself as confidently as one could and stood behind the desk awkwardly. 

“Well,” he said, pushing back his hair and adjusting his glasses clumsily, “I think you have everything you need to get started if you want to go ahead and be off!” Mr. English was visibly embarrassed and ready to be ridded of the judging teenagers, so they both blinked at him incredulously before turning to leave.

“Good luck boys! I expect only the best to come from this!” Mr. English yelled after them, waving them goodbye. Dave swallowed hard as he quickened his pace to get out of the room before John did. The more time spent alone with him in the empty school was more time teasing promises of future bruises and scrapes. He bolted, but instead of his feet meeting the nice linoleum tile of the hall, his shoulder did.

Pain shot all through his arm and chest, and his scramble for the door was rendered useless when he rolled onto his back to see John standing over him. Dave instinctively checked his face for his shades, and was relieved when he found them still in their rightful place. John looked at his wristwatch and back down at him, tilting his head to the side.

“Got somewhere to be Strider?” he asked, his teeth glinting in the sun streaming into the hall. “Because last time I checked, today was Monday.”

Dave forgot all about his present pain and scrunched his eyebrows together. It was indeed Monday, but it was still the butt end of the month. Their scheduled sessions didn’t start until the beginning of next.

“You want to… you want to start today?” Dave said, pushing himself to a sitting position on the cold floor. Then John did something unexpected. He extended a hand to Dave, seemingly offering to help him up.

Dave was suddenly hit with a powerful sense of déjà vu, remembering this exact thing happening years before, all the way back in 6th grade. Dave was laid helpless across the school sidewalk, pushed there by an 8th grader looking for trouble. John had stood over him just like this, looks of worry mixing in his sky blue eyes. They were just as beautiful now as they had been. John offered a hand to him.

“You ok?” John’s voice was small and innocent then, not at all like the voice puberty gave him. Dave had nodded and clasped the other boys hand gratefully.

Back in the present, Dave simply stared at him a moment before his realistic mind shook him from his memories. He decided not to trust it. Taking John’s hand would only lead to him being back on his ass, most likely thrown there this time. John wasn’t the boy he had been back in middle school. Dave got up on his own and pretended like the offer hadn’t been given. “We don’t have to start till next week,” he said, shouldering his bag properly onto his back again.

“Who says? The more studying the merrier right?” John said casually, stuffing his hand back into the pocket of his letterman’s jacket like his help hadn't been blatantly rejected. Why was he acting so polite about all this? Dave’s mind was racing with possible reasons and all of them were volatile or out of character. John had barely even tried to learn one thing in that class, why would he try now?

John looked at him, making his heart falter with the pin of those baby blues. They really did look just the same as they had in those middle school years. “Honestly, I really need this grade up as soon as possible,” he said, beginning to walk towards the exit that lead to the parking lot. Dave glanced down the opposite hallway, the one that lead him out the way closest to home. John looked back and raised an eyebrow at him. 

“Well, you coming or not?” he asked, turning back around and continuing to walk without an answer. Dave was then left standing between two choices. His curiosity in John’s behavior urged him to step towards his left, but common sense told him to step right and run home. His conversed foot took one tentative step right, leading him towards salvation. The sun stretched its fingers towards him, beckoning him to make the intelligent move. But Dave was never one to fall for the obvious choice. If a character always took the safe path, the story would never be exciting. His sneakers squealed in protest, and he turned left and pounded down the hall to catch up to John.

John looked at him as Dave slowed down at his side, and Dave meet his glance.

“Good thing you’re wearing shades,” John said, opening the door to the parking lot and holding it open for Dave. “It would be a crime to put the top up with the day being as nice as it is.”

Dave was going to ride home in John’s car. In John’s convertible. With John. To John’s house. To study with John. Alone. With John.

Dave had paused right outside the school gate and watched John continue on to his parking space. His lanky legs took long confident strides, and the soft breeze blew his coal black hair away from his forehead. He looked content and innocent as he moved, but Dave couldn’t believe it just like that. He had been expecting to see John's crew waiting by his car, ready to jump him, but they were alone in the parking lot. John turned back and continued walking backwards.

“I’ll need a copy of that schedule,” he yelled back to Dave, walking with just as much gusto backwards as he had forwards. “I’m pretty forgetful you know."

This could not be the same John. The same John that had called him a homo and punched him just minutes before. The same John that pushed him into walls whenever they passed each other bwteen classes. The same John that had constantly embarrassed him in front of everyone countless times for years on end. But in Dave’s hopeful mind, it could be the same John that had helped him up from the sidewalk 6 years ago.

He followed John to his car, hoping against hope that this was not some sleight of hand. Dave took a deep breath, and willingly sealed his fate as he stepped around to the passenger’s side.


	3. The Prince Meets the Knights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave wishes he was an only child and John is glad he is not

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> updates will begin again on Monday June 6th as I have no access to a computer over the weekend. things are gonna get hardcore so bear with me B)

Stepping into John’s sparkling white convertible was like catching a ride up to heaven with an angel. This was the car that replaced the holy staircase. John had hopped into the driver’s seat quite literally, gripping the door and hoisting himself into the open car. Dave sensed that wouldn’t go over well if he did the same, so instead, he simply flung his bag in behind the passenger’s seat and opened the door like a normal human being. As John started the car, Dave expected the radio to blare with the most recent popular music, but instead, a gentle tune of classical piano came to life with the engine. John hit the radio off with one hasty movement, and then continued to pretend the music had never played in the first place. Dave gave him a quick glance before buckling his seatbelt. John liked classical music? It was an odd match for a jock type, but it played perfectly along to Dave’s princely views of John. Dave decided to leave it alone for the time being, considering how quickly John had shut it down. Apparently there was a lot Dave had yet to learn about John.  
  
“So where to?” John asked, putting the car in reverse and backing out of the space.  
  
“What do you mean?” Dave’s heart pounded. If he was right about what John was thinking, this was going to have been a terrible decision.  
  
“I mean I don’t know your address by heart, weirdo,” he said, stopping to look at Dave. “Next week is at my place, this time it’s yours.”  
  
Dave swallowed his heart that had decided to begin trekking up his esophagus. It would’ve been bad for John to come over if he had had a chance to warn his two brothers back home, but it would be even worse to just waltz in with an attractive boy and have to explain himself.  
  
“Uh, can’t we study at the park or something? Like you said, it’s nice out,” Dave’s mind was going a million different directions. Does he text Dirk and tell him what’s going on or just try to get John to go somewhere else? What if John persisted? Would it be better to sneak in? No, that’d be more suspicious. John only laughed and looked at him like he was a puppy abandoned on the road.  
  
“Is little baby Strider embarrassed of his own house?” Dave’s breath hitched.  
  
“No!” he said, a little too passionately. “I mean, no, I’m not,” he sighed and pulled out his phone. “Take a left at the light. I live pretty close.” Dammit, why did John have to press all the right buttons? Of course he was embarrassed, but it wasn’t because his house was probably smaller and less grandeur than what John's was destined to be, it was his odd family he was worried about. And even if John had asked that, he would never admit to being embarrassed by them. He loved them too much to do that.  
  
Dave feed John directions as they went, the short trip consisting only of questions, instructions, and wind blowing through hair. Dave had texted Dirk that he had a peer coming over to study, and all he had gotten in response was a long string of thumbs up emoji’s along with one crudely created sword made of several symbols. This was either a terrible sign or a good one, and Dave had no way to gauge it until they arrived at the house.  
  
“Here,” Dave said, pointing to the entrance to a clump of apartments. He could see John smirk as he pulled up to the building Dave had specified, and Dave felt a pang of hurt and maybe even a little anger at his silent judgement. If John thought this was bad, he would implode when he saw the people inside. John made to turn of the car and step out, but Dave stopped him before he could get out.  
  
“Hey, wait,” he said, putting a hand out but not quite touching John. He stopped and sat back down in the car after some hesitation.  
  
“What?” he asked, glancing between Dave and the apartment complex like there was some sort of bomb inside he didn’t yet know about.  
  
“My family… my brothers are a bit on the odd side,” Dave explained, looking at John with intense severity.  
  
“Nothing I didn’t expect if they’re related to you,” John said, laughing at his own joke. Dave sighed.  
  
“Suit yourself,” he said, grabbing his bag and stepping out, slamming the door to the car behind him. He ran one hand through his hair to tame it from the ride, but it did little to help the mess of blonde. John sauntered after him, and Dave looked back at him before continuing to rush up all 6 flights of stairs to the top. John kept up with him, and Dave had only a second to see what his brothers were up to before John’s head peeped in as well.  
  
Dirk and Bro both had on full sets of fencing gear, each standing their ground with katanas in hand. Not rapiers. Katanas. Of course, why hadn’t Dave expected this to happen. Dirk was recognizable from the way the back of his helmet had been adjusted to accommodate his perfectly styled hair without ruining it, and Bro was the other, bigger one. He was also recognizable as the one wearing a black snapback over his head gear. They both looked absolutely ridiculous. Dirk was planted in a defensive stance with one foot on the back of the couch and one on the coffee table. Bro lunged at Dirk, causing him to dash from the table and flip it in one move. Dirk hurled himself from the back of the couch over the table and rolled to a stop as Bro jabbed at his left. Swords clashed and a small yelp from Dirk could be heard before he rose to his feet and raised a middle finger to Bro.  
  
“You totally tore my suit dude! “ Dirk raised his mask and his reddened freckled face was revealed in all its glory. “I’ve already sewn this thing twice this week man.” He quickly rummaged inside the front of his suit and produced a pair of pointed shades before turning to the two stunned teens in the doorway.  
  
Dirk was the same age as them, actually the same exact age as Dave. Twins separated at school due to problems with shenanigans in almost every place they transferred to. They were an explosive pair, so Dirk had decided to homeschool himself while Dave was free to go to school by his lonesome. But Dirk didn’t mind, it was more time to invent and bend the rules of education. They looked very similar in the face, both with the same caramel colored skin absolutely covered in freckles and small white scars over most visible body parts. Dirk’s hair was kept its natural brown color while Dave bleached his blonde, and their eyes were slightly different secretive hues under their respective shades. Dirk’s hair was styled up in perfectly curved bangs in the front and jagged spikes in the back, matching his choice of eyewear shape. He had a sort of perfected smolder that Dave lost to a low self-esteem, but his lack of social skills rendered that useless against the force that was John Egbert. As Dirk caught the misty blue of John’s eyes, he flawlessly continued on to wave and take a step backward, effectively knocking his knees out from under him with the sideways table and tumbling over to the other side. Bro did a little better by simply jutting his chin to John, which John returned hesitantly.  
  
“C’mon John,” Dave whispered hastily, beginning to climb the stairs to the second floor of the apartment where his room was. But John stayed rooted in his spot.  
“Well hold on there, Dave,” John said at a normal volume. Dave thought this was a detrimental move. “You haven’t introduced me to your…brothers yet.” The smile on John’s face made it obvious how much fun he was having already with making Dave’s life a living hell.  
  
“Fine,” Dave said, descending the steps he had taken already. “John, this is my twin brother Dick Slider, and my older brother, Bro. Guys, this is John. Bye.” He promptly ignored the feigned gasp of pain that Dirk uttered from behind the table, and dragged John upstairs by his jackets arm.  
  
John laughed and allowed himself to be directed up the stairs to the top floor of the whole building. It wasn’t until they reached Dave’s bedroom door that the heat from Dave’s cheeks and mind had cooled and he realized the situation in its entirety. He was about to be alone with John, in his very own bedroom. A sheepish dream he had had a few times over the years was becoming a reality. His only hope was that there was no underwear on his floor.


	4. The Prince Learns the Ways of the Peasant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More from John's pov this time around, and off they go. Also a bit longer than the others since you guys had to wait a weekend B)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next update comin round on the 8th!

The prince of the sea and the sky inhaled deeply as he stepped into the quarters of the scarlet peasant. The room smelled of cinnamon and fresh air, giving anyone who entered a sense of walking though an apple orchard. The prince suddenly craved cider as he stepped over the threshold of the door, and he surveyed the room as his mouth watered.

A small bed with white sheets lay unmade in the far left corner of the room, squashed between the wall and a desk absolutely covered in a messy array of music sheets, drawings and vinyl records. A large computer monitor sat safely away from the mess on a higher platform of the desk. The screensaver looked like a badly drawn highly saturated picture of a smiling apple, that of which was jumping from corner to corner as the computer lay dormant. On the other side of the room, shelves upon shelves of jars and stones were neatly organized and displayed. Upon closer inspection, the jars held what looked like deceased animals kept in formaldehyde, and the stones were mostly small fossils. Some jars were empty, perhaps awaiting new installments, and some stones were sparkling precious gems and raw geodes. In between two towers of shelves was a smallish television with quite the collection of both consoles and games stashed beneath it. Overall the room seemed cluttered and yet clean at the same time, stuffed with belongings that had no better place to be. There were no undergarments on the floor, much to the peasant’s relief.

The open windows were curtain less and faced the city, looking out onto the tops of buildings and the many cars moving below. But the most amazing thing about the whole room was the mess of strings hanging to and fro along the ceiling, each holding its fair share of polaroid pictures with clothespins, creating a beautiful hammock of landscapes and colored yarn high above the floor. The prince squinted up at the photos, once even reaching up to touch one of them, bringing the glint off of it to reveal a masterfully captured sunset on the beach. The peasant coughed awkwardly, effectively gaining the attention of the prince.

John turned toward the door from the window, raising his eyebrows at Dave. He blushed slightly, straightening up and shoving his hands in his jackets pockets. He had been caught gawking at the simple treasures of the lower class, and he sighed as if to dismiss the excitement that had been in his eyes just seconds before.

“You done judging?” Dave said, tilting his head up and to the side as if addressing a small child. An old looking camera hung from his door, and it swung lazily as Dave leaned against it.

“Oh I won’t be done doing that for a while still,” John replied, giving a half hearted glimpse over the rooms interesting contents like they were commonplace. In truth, John wanted nothing more than to ask Dave what his favorite game was and play against him. Or even maybe observe the music sheets and see if he could read them into melodies. He definitely wanted to pull over a chair and immerse himself in the pictures high above him, so that he could examine each one in all its glory. He wanted to ask Dave if he wanted to become a composer or a photographer or a paleontologist, and he was actually interested to hear that answer. Why was he interested? Dave was just an easily bothered geek from his English class. Wasn’t he?

“You didn’t even bring your bag did you?” Dave asked, pulling John from his thoughts once more. He had moved over to the desk and was sifting through papers to find old work and books from their class, and he glanced over to John when he still hadn’t recieved an answer.

“Have you ever seen me with a stupid backpack on, Dave?” John scoffed, crossing his arms and slouching his shoulders. A sound came from Dave that sounded suspiciously like a chuckle. John blinked in stunned silence. His laugh was…no. It wasn’t adorable or attractive in any way shape or form. And John surely didn’t want to do anything that would make him laugh again. He certainly wasn’t thinking about being nice to Dave from now on just to make sure that that sound could reach his ears every day. Not one bit of any of that. He swallowed, and his throat felt weirdly tight. Not one bit.

“Something funny, twerp?” John said, his voice quiet at first but then rising to its normally brash level. Dave turned and gave him a face that embodied the word ‘Really?’

“I dunno, the fact that a grown ass senior doesn’t bother with carrying even the essentials to school is kind of baffling,” Dave said, bringing the supplies over to the bed and sitting down beside them. “But then again, its you we’re talking about.” He turned after he had set out the papers and put a hand to his chin in fake thought. “And y’know, I could’ve sworn I remember a little junior high boy running around with a ghost busters backpack for about 3 years. Must’ve been another John Egbert.” Dave smirked at John’s reddening face, and, accepting defeat, John slumped onto the bed beside the papers with a childish huff. The books and papers separated the two boys, and Dave breathed out a silent thank you to the heavenly forces that had saved him from having to sit right beside his crush on his own bed.

Dave quickly set to work on sorting through the assignments that John had completely bombed, the goal being to simply gauge how close to the beginning of the whole course this tutoring would have to begin. Dave brought up the first book they were assigned over the summer, The Great Gatsby. As overanalyzed as the book was, Dave hadn’t minded it much. He held the book up to John.

“Did you read this?” Dave asked, starting as basic as he could. One pair of darting eyes and a clenched jaw from John told Dave that there was no fucking way he had even opened the book. Dave rolled his eyes.

“Did you look up the sparknotes for it?” he sighed, and John’s smiled and laughed to himself, giving Dave a look that had the word guilty written all over it. Dave couldn’t help but smile back, giving a short breathy laugh himself. He was too focused on the book to see a light pink come to John’s face. “Good enough I guess,” he flipped through the pages and brought the memories of the book to the front of his mind. “I’m gonna ask you a few discussion questions to see if the cheating way can get you by on tests, kay?”

John nodded and stared at Dave unwaveringly, remaining unusually silent and attentive. In reality, John was simply trying to decide whether this stirring in his stomach was because he was hungry or if it was because the boy in front of him was giving him nervous butterflies. He settled on being hungry and ate the butterflies. Dave snapped the book closed and shifted so he was facing John with legs crossed. John paused, then hesitantly toed off his shoes and mirrored John. Dave silently acknowledged the small act of politeness and continued on.

“What does water symbolize in the novel?” Dave asked, leaning his elbows onto his knees and resting his chin on his palms.

“Uh,” John’s stomach fluttered. Dave is not cute. He’s not. Focus. “Misfortune? Er, bad luck?”

“Evidence?” Dave asked, surprised that he was so spot on to the answer that was discussed in class. Maybe sparknotes was more useful than he thought it to be.

“Well, it rains on his first date with Daisy, and he flips out. And the river is separating him from his dreams in East Egg. Also he kinda died in water so, y’know, yikes.” John said, making a face with the last word. Dave tried his best not to let a laugh escape him and ended up snorting instead. John looked up at him and then down into his lap, smiling to himself at the small achievement before meeting Dave’s gaze again.

“A+, well done,” Dave said, smiling at John. John took note on how Dave’s right cheek was dimpled when he smiled, and that his freckles seemed to scatter and settle with the expression. He also noticed that his dark skin tone made a blush a color that rivaled the red of cherries. Wait, why was Dave blushing? Did laughing make him blush? Did smiling? Did…did he make Dave blush? He stopped this train of thought in order to maintain the color of his own cheeks, but he could still feel the heat rushing to his face nonetheless.

Dave coughed and broke the extended eye contact to look back at the book. “Ok next question,” he said, more to himself than to John.

“What does the symbol of the green light represent?” Dave asked, glancing over his shades to look at John. John laughed.

“That ones easy, it’s the American Dream. Even people who’ve never read the book know that one.” John said, crossing his arms and setting his elbows on his thighs.

“So, people like you?” Dave asked, grinning that half dimpled smile again. John retaliation was prevented by a voice from the door.

“Actually, the green light represents Gatsby’s hard on for Nick Carraway and how much he wants that fine piece of spider man ass. I actually have a completed series of fanfiction depicting how the romantic plot should’ve gone had he realized how cute Spidey actually was all alo-“ Dirk was interrupted via a pillow smacking him in the face from across the room. He recovered quickly. “-along. As I was saying, the stories go off of the AU where Daisy is hella gay for Jordan Baker and Gatsby buys a cute little apartment with Ol’ Sport and they-“ Dirk dodged a projectile pen and tried to continue before Dave picked up the huge book “Les Miserables” and raised his eyebrows. He scampered away laughing, and from Dave’s room Dirk could be heard asking Bro where he put the katanas. Dave quickly turned to John and with a simple lock of the eyes he conveyed his message. Time to move. They both swiftly gathered up the books and abandoned their shoes on the bedroom floor.

Dave took the stairs down two at a time, and John stumbled to follow him with his lanky legs flying every which way. He had no idea where they were going, but he trusted Dave more than he trusted the twin with the swords. They burst out the door and heard a cry of disdain from the apartment.

“See ya Dick Slider! Bye Bro!” John called, shutting the door after them.

“Bye Joh- hey wait what’d you call me?!” Dirk cried, opening the door and shouting after them. They pounded up the stairs and took a sharp left to the stairwell before Dirk could say anymore.

John looked behind them and then forward, before quickly realizing the dilemma he had gotten himself into by stopping to close the door. Dave was now a good length ahead of him, and the nature of stairs gave John an unobscured view of Dave’s skinny jeaned booty. And what a butt it was. Dave slid onto a landing and glanced at John with a knowing smirk.

“I can feel you burning holes in my pockets John, at least try to be discrete,” he said, quickly continuing to the final door in the stairwell.

“Hey! I wasn’t staring dude ok I-“ John flubbered and was put to an immediate stop as Dave slammed open the door with his shoulder. A gentle fall breeze blew John’s bangs up off his forehead, and he watched as Dave ran onto the middle of the flat roof top. The sun was settling against the tall towers of the city, and in the distance, kissing the water of the ocean. The clouds blushed pink and red, and leaves danced onto the roof and back off in a slow dance, following the rhythm of the birds and the bugs. It was a beautiful place.

“This is where I go when they overwhelm the house,” Dave half shouted to John, who still stood at the door. “It’s calming up here.”

John nodded in a daze and stepped onto the roof with just his socks separating his feet from the concrete. He looked across the horizon of the glittering buildings and fiery water on the coastline. He sat in front of Dave and set the books on top of the papers he had grabbed. That’s when his eyes set on the boy in front of him.

Dave’s hair glittered gold in the setting sun, and his sunglasses were useful again in the low light. His skin seemed to glow like the clouds, and he smiled at John as he settled.

And that’s when the prince realized that there was something more beautiful than the seas and the skies, and it was sitting about a foot and a half in front of him.


	5. The Prince is Not the Same

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Foreshadowing and secrets building in this one, get ready for an angst fest in the next few chapters. B)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> depending on how time serves me and how events hit me like a truck, the next update will be on Friday the 10th or Monday the 13th.

The sky seeped from a light blue into a blazing scarlet as the two boys learned and laughed, both forgetting who and how they were as the evening stretched thin. They had successfully gone over two more novels and their questions, and Dave was starting to suspect that John simply played dumb in class. His answers were on the dot most of the time, and if not, they only required little guidance. Dave had an odd feeling of pride in the other boy, and he was glad that he had misunderstood him at first. John was becoming more of a friend and less of an enemy with each passing hour. But the sky brought its own plans, and a storm was brewing on the horizon.

“I’m not feelin’ like doing another novel,” Dave stated, laying back against the ground and glancing at John from his side. John painted his expression into one of feigned disbelief.

“Dave Strider, worlds biggest nerd, giving up on homework?” John said, announcing the words like they were a headline. He laughed and dodged a kick form Dave.

“Hey now, I’m not ‘giving up’. This is only our first Monday. Actually, its like, our 0th Monday, since Mr. Impatient here can’t wait a week,” Dave said, his eyebrows going up. John rolled his eyes.

“Well at least I’m eager to learn,” he scoffed, adopting a nasaly nerd accent as he picked up a few papers they hadn’t gotten to yet. There was some of Dave’s other schoolwork mixed with the English assignments, and John read through the work from Dave’s other advanced classes. An assignment from College French appeared first, and John thought that he wouldn’t mind hearing Dave speak some French some time. Amongst the random worksheets John discovered a slightly crumpled essay about fish eggs for AP Bio and a crowded page of numbers and scribbles from AP Statistics. Was this boy taking all the college credit classes available? Geez. John flipped to an ordinary piece of notebook paper. There were small designs doodled up the sides, making it look like it was torn right out of an ancient book of fairytales. It was a short spurt of words, showcasing some of Dave’s hastily scrawled handwriting. It looked as though a few titles hadn’t made it off the drawing board, seeing as the phrases “Prince of the Sky” and “Boy Blue” had been slashed through with pen. The title that had made the spot, and that was written in beautiful decorative cursive was “Keeper of Thine Heart”. John thought that sounded as pretentious as Shakespeare himself, but he went on to read it nonetheless.

“I am no ruler of sun or sky-“

A raindrop landing beside the first line interrupted John’s reading. He looked up and saw the impending clouds, and glanced to Dave to see that he had been hit to, and was now sitting up straight.

“Is it raining?” Dave asked, holding a hand out to the sky. The sky answered with a rumbling thunder, and they both hastily gathered up the papers and books and jogged to the door. Dave opened it and ushered John through, and as it closed behind him, the rain began to come down in torrents. Dave turned to John and they simply looked at eachother for a few moments.

“You should go home before it gets too bad,” Dave said, his voice sounding disappointed. John nodded and began the slow descent down the stairs. Dave followed suit, lining up his steps right beside John’s. Every once in a while, one of them would glance over at the other, but never at the same time, luck stuttering their secretive eyes at just the right intervals. Each of them smiled to themselves and second-guessed the other as they walked in silence.

Walking through the door to the apartment, they were met with a calmer scene than before. Bro and Dirk were sitting in front of the T.V., watching what looked like a rerun of Con Air. The lights were off and only the glow of the screen illuminated the two boys on the couch, dancing scenes mirroring in each of their shades.

“Oh! I love this movie!” John said happily as he walked in and stood beside the screen.

“whhHUHA WHO GOES THERE,” Dirk snorted and wiped drool from the side of his mouth, sitting up and rubbing his eyes from beneath his shades. “Oh its just you two.” He stretched and elbowed Bro in the side. Bro grumbled and stayed put.

“Bro, hey. Bro. The movies over. Now this stupid Nic Cage shit is on. Bro,” As Dirk’s attempts to wake his brother escalated in violence, Dave gestured for John to follow him to his room. John’s heart was shattered. They had both been sleeping through arguably one of the best movies in American history. He trudged up the stairs, pouting.

As Dave set down his stack of work, John’s curiosity urged him to slip a certain piece of paper into his jacket pocket. He put on his shoes and found his car keys that he had abandoned on the bed. He took one last look around the room and finally his eyes rested on Dave.

“Well, I guess I’ll see you at school,” John said, smiling and holding his fist out to Dave.

“Yeah,” Dave replied, sealing the deal with a fist bump. John made his way downstairs and outside on his lonesome, and Dirk and Bro said small goodbyes as he waved them farewell.

The rain was relentless now, and John gave a small yelp as he realized his cars roof was still down. At the same time, laughter erupted from the upstairs bedroom of the Strider household, and Dave ran out the door with an armful of towels a moment later. After John had raised the roof and thanked Dave, the two of them wiped down the interior and said goodbye once more. And as Dave waved from the awning of the apartment, John waved back and dug in his pocket for his keys, his fingers brushing the folded up paper in his pocket. A few hours after John had left, Dave would remember a poem he had written years ago and think about adding onto it, but in a clean sweep of his room, he would not be able to find it, and eventually he would blame it on his messy organization and give up.

The storm thundered and growled as The Prince of the Sky/Boy Blue/John Egbert drove home in a damp convertible, and a love poem waited in anticipation to be read by its long awaited recipient.


	6. The Prince is the Same

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *chants* angst angst angst. HEAVY SLURS IN THIS CHAPTER! John and his "friends" are ruthless demons. Dont worry, things look up eventually.

The following week of school dragged by as if nothing had changed. John still sat diagonal to Dave and laughed with his gang of bullies in class instead of doing work. Dave kept a close watch of him and noticed the slightest of positive changes in his demeanor, but his friends were reverting him with ten times the force that Dave had used to fix him. He hoped the next study session would build those walls higher, and maybe one day he would shrug off his toxic group. Dave knew better than to approach John as if they were friends now. John gave him enough reasons to stay away by not calling off his friends when they latched onto him. He no longer participated in their attacks, but that ended up feeling worse than when he had. Instead, the boy watched his so called friends throw insults at Dave like unwanted garbage, and all Dave could do was watch as John stood silently on the sidelines. But it wasn’t long before the group realized their leader had gone mute. Actually, it took exactly a week before they started attacking with full force.

The weekend seemed to have fired them up, and their energy for teasing him was off the charts. But it was Monday again, and Dave had to get to John’s somehow. He decided to walk towards the parking lot after catching John’s eye, but it only half worked. John’s gang followed on his toes.

“Hey look, the queer is here!” one of them squealed, his voice like nails on a chalkboard as Dave walked past. He flipped them the bird, and they simply rumbled with laughter and crept silently behind him like a pack of wolves following prey.

“Watchu been doin in the men’s room girlie? Suckin off anyone who’ll letcha? Don’t act like we don’t notice,” another growled, elbowing the ones closest to him to join him in laughing at his own joke. Dave flinched and stayed silent. Couldn’t even go to he bathroom without being accused now apparently. But talking back wasn’t a wise move. No matter how clever a comeback was, they’d continue. And if a snippy remark turned out to be too intelligent for them to understand, they’d just jump him. He glanced to his side at John, who’s face was even stonier than Dave’s.

“Hey what’re we doing letting this buttfucker walk this close to us anyway Johnny? He might give us AIDS by just breathing y’know.” This sent a new wave of laughter through the group and John visibly swallowed. He slowed his pace and stopped outside the door to the parking lot.

“Go home guys, been a long day,” John said, looking down so his eyes were masked by his bangs. The gang exchanged surprised looks and eventually their minds registered that Dave had stopped with them. He should’ve continued outside without John, but his focus was stuck on what John would do next. Had he changed him at all?

“You mean to tell us you’re leavin’ with this faggot, J?” this came from one of the taller silent ones of the group, an intimidating looking boy their age. Dave could see what the words did to John.

“I’ve told you, we have tutoring lessons. It makes my dad happy, so,” John stopped talking and his fists clenched at his sides.

“So what? Skip it. Your family has dough yeah? Pay off the principal for your dumb ass grades. You don’t need this man whore blabbing at you for an hour,” the tall one paused. “Or are you two fucking?”

Dave blushed to his eyebrows and his jaw clenched. They were speaking as if he didn’t exist. Shock was the only thing that kept him from sprinting out the door. Outside, it had started to thunder.

John’s face swiveled up slowly and he locked eyes with Dave. For a moment, he looked as if he was going to simply walk out the door with him. His eyes looked like they were pleading with him, apologizing before the crime was committed. In a second his eyes had lost their warmth, and the blue was the coldest Dave had ever seen. He shivered as John stared him down.

“Of course not. Like I’d even enjoy spending time with such a fucking faggot. I don’t even know why he’s so obsessed with me.” John’s words pierced Dave like shards of glass, and he let the chill run into his blood. But John wasn’t done. “Probably has a disgusting little gay crush on me.” Dave’s body relaxed and his eyes lost their life. Words could not surface in his mind. For once in his life, words failed him. Instead, he just shook his head slowly from side to side, and turned and ran out the door before the tears could be seen slipping out from under his shades.

He ran blindly and with muffled ears, but he could still hear John’s friends laughing manically as they watched him run. His feet slapped the pavement with no mercy, and the first few drops of rain accompanied the ones he was making. He grinded his teeth to prevent the screams from escaping, and his mind was blank.

He ran and ran until the wet grass outside of his apartment welcomed him. He kneeled on the grass and sat calmly for a moment before pounding his fists into the mud. This is when the screams came. The door to the apartment slammed open and warm arms gathered him up and took him inside.

Moments later, John’s car squealed into the parking lot haphazardly, and he had gotten out before the windshield wipers even had the chance to stop. He was met by the eyes of two guards, each with crossed arms and a blank expression 

Dirk and Bro were flanking the door to the apartment, their hands weaponless. Somehow, they were even more menacing this way. Even with black glass in place of eyes, John knew they were staring him down. He approached the door as cautiously as he could, even though his pace was quick. He had gone too far to cover his own tracks, and he had to fix it. Two muscled arms stopped him at the exact same moment, one from each Strider on either side of the door. They both looked straight ahead as they held him back, barely acknowledging his existence.

“Dave was wrong.” Dirk turned to face John, and his eyes could be made out without the glare on the glass. They bore into John with every bit of hatred the boy had. "You haven’t changed a bit.” 


	7. The Keepers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> My favorite chapter I've written for this hands down. Don't stray too far! There's a short epilogue coming soon! ('Keeper of Thine Heart' the poem is also all original and written by me, so don't get confused about poetry origins lmao)

Water trickled down the peasants face and pooled in his eyes. His hair dripped with the constant downpour from the gray clouds that loomed over him. His hands shook in his lap, and he had no energy to make them stop. Small droplets weighed down his eyelashes, and he blinked to free them. He closed his eyes and clenched his jaw. He was about to get up when he heard the door slam open.

Heavy panting sounded from behind Dave, but he kept his head down. Eyes now open, he listened to the door clank closed. Steps approached him, slapping through the layer of rain on the roof. Moments later, legs fell to the ground, and John sat cross-legged beside Dave. Dave turned his face towards him slightly, and his eyes widened. John simply looked at him and gave him a halfhearted grin.

John’s nose ran with blood that the rain was wiping away in rivulets, and one of his eyes was ringed with an already apparent bruise. With his still constant panting, the blood rolled over his top lip and stained his front teeth. He wiped at the blood with one of his jacket sleeves, tainting the white sleeve with a streak of stark red.

“You’ve got a feisty couple of brothers y’know,” John said, his eyes still trained on the horizon.

 “I know,” Dave replied, his eyes looking in the same direction. He wondered silently what John had done to get them to back off. Dave knew better than anybody that if they had put up a real fight, John wouldn’t be here sitting beside him. He must’ve said something that made them stop.

“I’m sorry,” John said, his breath hitching on the edge of the words. His face turned downwards and he fiddled with his fingers.

“I know,” Dave’s eyes watched John’s fingers pull each other. He had to know it wasn’t going to be that easy.

“Y’know,” John said, disregarding Dave’s lack of forgiveness, “last time I was here, I learned a lot about you. But you still don’t know much about me.” John sat back on his palms and let the rain hit his face full on. He paused, and Dave tilted his head towards him.

“I’ll let you in on some top secret friend only info, so if it starts hitting too hard, tell me,” John swallowed and wiped his nose again before continuing. “For instance, did you know that I was in private school until I was 12 and I begged my dad to put me in normal kid school? Did you know that that Ghostbuster’s backpack was torn off of me and thrown in the trash by some 8th graders when we were in 7th? Did you know that you were the only person I felt safe around when we were in middle school?” John’s words started to sputter and choke, but he plowed forward. “Did you know that the reason I sit in the front of every class is because I need glasses and refuse to wear them because one of my ‘friends’ told me they looked ugly once? Just one time! And I haven’t worn them in public since then! Can you believe that?” His voice was getting high and overwhelming at this point, but he was far from done. “Did you know that when I first met you I called you my friend before I even talked to you? Did you know that I still didn’t know the difference between the words ‘friend’ and ‘boyfriend’ and when I told my dad about you he hit me? Did you know that the group of kids I hang out with have parents that tell my dad about things I do everyday?” Tears spilled over the rims of John’s eyes, and slight hiccups were mixing into his words. “Did you know that I’m still scared to go home everyday?”

Dave’s arms were suddenly around John’s torso, and John’s crying reached its high point. He wept and let his chin rest on Dave’s arm. After a few moments, he repositioned himself to hug Dave back. They sat in the rain and embraced and cried for what seemed like hours.

“I’m so so sorry Dave,” John hiccuped, his mouth buried into Dave’s shoulder. “I never wanted it to get that bad.” Dave stared over John’s shoulder, watching the boys back shudder with waves of fresh tears. “I-I found something in your room last week,” John said. Dave blinked but continued to hold John.

“I am no ruler of sun or sky,” John said, his voice nasally. Dave froze. “And I know small of beauty, much less than thy.” Dave pulled away from John, putting his hands on each of John’s shoulders and holding him at arms length. John’s eyes traveled upwards until they met Dave’s. They shone an even brighter blue when contrasted by the red from crying.

“But if ever I saw such a sight as the, I would know to call the a masterpiece,” John’s words matched Dave’s thoughts and his mouth formed the smallest of smiles. This was surreal. “And tho I have never seen the heavens, and the angels have never called me reverend,” John continued, never breaking eye contact with Dave. There was no paper in sight. He had memorized it. “If I ever saw a sight as the, I would know to call the heavenly.” Dave broke into a full on grin at this point, and he watched him as he continued word for word the poem he had written for him back in middle school.

“I am no keeper of modern arts,” John’s eyes wandered about Dave’s face, and he paused before the next line. Dave took this opportunity to jump in. 

“And I am quick to judge the sum of the parts,” he said, and John’s eyes snapped back to his.

“But if I ever loved a sight as the,” John moved closer by the slightest amount, but Dave noticed.

“The keeper of thine heart I would be,” he finished, moving as much as John had, making the space between them smaller. The tension was thick enough to drown in.

“I forgot one last top secret,” John said, his eyes shamelessly hanging on Dave’s lips. “I’ve learned the difference between the words ‘friend’ and ‘boyfriend’,” A hand came up to brush against Dave’s cheek, and John’s eyes found Dave’s again. “But I still have moments when I forget what that difference is. And its odd, but you’re usually present for those-“ John was interrupted on account of Dave’s mouth crashing into his. The force of the kiss pushed John backwards and Dave threw out an arm at the last moment to save them from crashing to the hard cement of the roof. John let one of his elbows rest on the ground and the other hand was busy being tangled in Dave’s hair. Dave’s other hand was gripping the back of John’s jacket, and the two of them only broke the kiss when suffocation was imminent. They both breathed heavy for a moment, their eyes opening slightly as their minds caught up with their actions. John breathed a laugh out of his nose.

“That went incredibly well,” John said, his fingers playing with the ends of Dave’s hair.

“Shut up,” Dave said, and their lips met once more. His heart fluttered and left the building, and neither took much notice when the rain eased up and eventually stopped entirely. They both breathed with heavy pants and kissed between breaths until the stiffness of their position reached their joints and they had to move.

Dave pulled John up with him and they both sat across from each other, looking each other down respectively. John smiled.

“What are you smiling at ya goof,” Dave said, although a grin was creeping onto his own face.

“I just thought of the best pickup line,” John said, his brows creating a flirtatious look.

“Alright, hit me with your best shot,” Dave said, letting a laugh escape him.

“If I said I was your homework, would you do me?” John said, raising his eyebrows and winking at Dave. Dave blushed to his ears and kicked John playfully in the leg.

“You gotta take me to dinner first, prude,” Dave said, cocking his head to the side.

“Done,” John said, moving closer to Dave once again. “How’s tonight at 6 sound?  
Dave laughed at him.

“You’re serious?” Dave asked, his hand touching John’s neck as he came close enough to touch.

“Serious? I’m the keeper Dave,” John said, and he leaned down to kiss him again. Their smiles pressed against one another, and Dave let his dreams melt together with his reality for the first time. The prince was kissing the peasant, and each held the others heart in their chests. Both were deemed keepers under the word of the colors that had silently painted the skies above them, and the sea kissed the sun as it set over the waters. 


	8. Royal Flush

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> extra tidbit! (also im sorry for the quick ending? im not used to drawing out fics so i wrapped it up real fast but *shrug*)

“I’m telling you, it was hormones or anticipation or something,” John said, a bright blush covering his cheeks. One of his hands was covering his face and the other was pushing gently against Dave’s. Dave laughed against his hand and leaned back off the console in the middle of the car. He adjusted his sunglasses from where John had pushed them into his face. Dave’s smirk and accusatory eyebrows made John groan.

“I’m not kidding! That was a one time splurge I swear,” John covered his face with both hands. His fingers went under his newly equipped glasses to cover his eyes. His blush was getting worse by the second. “I’m shy normally, that kiss fest was a miracle.”

“It sure was,” Dave chuckled and dodged a shove from John. He gave a hefty sigh and opened the door of John’s car to get out. “Well I guess I’ll be toughing out the school day without a good luck kiss then,” he looked at John from over his shades and saw the boy peeking at him from between his fingers. As he shrugged and turned to exit the car, John’s hand reached out and tugged Dave back down into the passenger seat.

“Be still,” he warned, and leaned over the seat to give him a lightning fast peck on the cheek. Dave turned and smiled cheesily at John.

“Ah shut up,” John said, grabbing his new bag out from the backseat and getting out.

“But I didn’t say anything!” Dave whined, following on John’s heels. John simply laughed at him and let his right arm go slack as Dave approached. Dave took his place by his side and linked his left pinkie with John’s right. It wasn’t holding hands, but it was something. Dave smiled to himself as John pushed open the door and the cool air hit them.

When English class finally came, John’s old gang snickered and laughed all by their lonesome in the back of the class while John sat right next to Dave in the front. Anticipation built as Mr. English passed out the most recent graded tests, and Dave kept his faced down until John got his. They flipped at the same time, and Dave cheered. Twin A’s stretched across their papers. Mr. English stopped in front of their desks, and he smiled at the letters.

“Tutoring is going well then? Aren’t your weeks over by now?” he asked, examining them from over his stack of papers in his arms.

“We’ve had a little extension,” Dave said, glancing over at John. John nodded in confirmation.

“Well it seems to have been a good decision. Good work boys,” Mr. English said, and he could’ve imagined it, but Dave almost swore he saw him wink.


End file.
